


Salvation

by hazellepotter



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Battle of Hogwarts, Battle of Hogwarts AU, Canon Compliant, Deathly Hallows, Deep Connection, During the war AU, F/M, Forbidden Love, Hope, Loyalty, Malfoy Manor, Opposite Sides of the War, POV Draco Malfoy, Pre-Battle of Hogwarts, Redemption, Salvation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-01
Updated: 2019-04-01
Packaged: 2019-11-24 00:12:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,237
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18158900
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hazellepotter/pseuds/hazellepotter
Summary: He expected her to yell back at him, but all she said was, "There are no tricks here, Draco. Only hope for survival."





	Salvation

Draco remembered vividly the day they brought her to his dungeons. Her green tights were ripped and her hair was matted to her head. He remembered seeing the gash on her right cheek. He remembered that he expected her to be afraid, but her face only expressed tranquility. It appeared she had struggled against them before they grabbed a-hold of her and apparated, and he was sure she put up hell of a fight. He remembered being happy to see her, even if it was under horrendous circumstances. That's when he realized he was happy to see anyone from his old life before he went down the path to hell. That's when he realized Luna Lovegood might be his salvation. 

* * *

The first time he went down to talk to her, the others were asleep. Her back was against the wall, and she was playing some kind of game with her fingers and whispering to herself in a whimsical voice. She didn't look up at him as he approached the iron door, but all she said through the bars was, "Hello Draco, I have been waiting for you."

He was perplexed to hear that she had been waiting for him. If he were her, he would be the last person he would want to see.

"Why?" He asked her.

It was then she looked up, and her grey eyes were full of curiosity. She studied Draco's appearance, and it was such a strong gaze, that he had to look away. He felt exposed and vulnerable in a way he hadn't felt since he was a young boy. He was now hardened with age. He wasn't sure what it was like to feel anything anymore other than fear. 

"Because I feel like you could bring me some good conversation," she answered airily, "My cell-mates don't like talking much these days." She motioned her head over to the three sleeping bodies around the corner.

Draco swallowed the lump in his throat and opened the iron door then and slipped through. He made sure to lock it behind him. He sat across from her and crossed his arms. It was then he realized how cold it was in the dungeon and how inhumane it was to keep them all here, especially old frail Mr. Ollivander. If he lived through this, he would be surprised. 

"I can tell you I have nothing good to talk about," he told her, "Only darkness."

Randomly, she piped up, "What time of day is it? I have lost track of time down here the past few weeks."

Draco blinked a few times and it was then he realized there were no windows down in the dungeons. Everyone's internal clocks were off. She hadn't seen sunlight in weeks. Draco tried to ignore how dry his throat was becoming.

"It is three in the afternoon," he confessed, "I was surprised to see your cell-mates sleeping."

She seemed to nod to herself and then went back to looking down at her fingers. She had picked off the skin around her nails and her hands were cracked with dryness. 

"Do-do you need water?" He asked her suddenly.

"Always," she replied, "But you could get in trouble for giving us extra. We get one glass a day."

"I know," he answered quickly, "But I don't care."

He wasn't sure where his lack of respect of authority suddenly came from, or why he felt bold. It was unlike him, especially when it came to doing things for others. Draco was known to be self-serving, but Luna didn't even seem surprised that he had offered. It was as though she saw a completely new side of him that he didn't even know existed.

He left her behind to go back up the stairs to conjure up some water for her. He should do it for her cell-mates too, but he couldn't risk too much. It was then he remembered he didn't lock the door of the dungeons. Frightened, he ran back down the steps to see Luna helping Mr. Ollivander up as they were about to slip through the doors.

Luna seemed un-phased as the rest of her cell-mates either expressed hatred or even defeat once they saw Draco. 

He could not believe he had been so stupid. He threw the water down on the dungeons floor in anger. He almost got himself killed, and for what? _For a girl he couldn't stand in school or wouldn't even give the night of day?_

"Nice try!" He yelled angrily, "Nice little trick there, Lovegood!" 

He expected her to yell back at him, but all she said was, "There are no tricks here, Draco. Only hope for survival."

Draco tried to ignore the punch he felt in his gut as he turned on his heel, locked the door of the dungeon, and strode back up the stairs.

* * *

Draco didn't go down to see her or any of the prisoners for a few days after that. He couldn't bear it. Not knowing he was so close to losing everything. Or even so close to saving four lives, he thought. But he swallowed the thought down. It was not a good time to suddenly develop a conscious.

He tip-toed down the stairs so she wouldn't notice he was about to make another stupid mistake, but he heard her voice speak up. Her throat was dry and her voice was raspy, but she wouldn't complain. Luna Lovegood didn't have much to say about anything.

"Hello Draco," she said again, "I wondered when you would come back to see me."

"Why?" He asked as he walked into the dungeon and shut the door. It was then he realized the other captors were sleeping once again. 

"Because I knew the guilt would bother you."

"You know nothing."

"You know nothing of what I see or believe."

He rolled his eyes, "Is there a time you ever not philosophical?"

"I wouldn't call myself philosophical, just observant."

_"Whatever."_

They sat in silence for a moment, and he could feel Luna studying him again. He felt like crawling out of his skin.

"What is it?" He spat, "I didn't come down here to be analyzed."

"Did you not?" She asked him, "I figured you came down here to see the truth of the situation and of yourself."

Stunned to silence, he looked down at the ground and at her bare feet. She seemed to have ripped off her tights she arrived in. He wondered how she was surviving down here in the cold. He felt the desire to enchant a fire for them, but he remembered then that magic didn't work down in the dungeons, thanks to his father. 

"What is the truth then?" He asked her curiously, "What is it you see that I don't?"

He wondered if it was another one of her schemes, but he was sure she wasn't the strategic type. It was more like she just took the opportunity to possibly escape that day, even if it meant she died. He wondered what it felt like to live day by day, and that's when he realized he already was. 

"I see the truth," she said vaguely, completely ignoring his question, "And one day, you will too." 

* * *

For days after that, Draco would come down to the dungeons and visit Luna. He always just made sure her cell-mates were asleep. He felt drawn to her. He was intrigued by her intellect and the way she didn't seemed to be phased by the darkness surrounding her. He knew if he were in her position, he would have gone crazy by now. But somehow, throughout all of this, she was the one making him feel safe.

"It sounds like you really loved your mother," Draco said, "I'm sorry you lost her. If I didn't have my mum, I don't know what I would have-"

But he stopped himself from finishing his statement. His voice trailed off, and it was then he realized how afraid he truly was.

"She's your grounding force," Luna commented, "We all need one."

"Who is yours?" He asked her, but before she could reply, there was a bang from up above. 

Draco stood up cautiously and motioned for Luna to get down.

"Stay here," he told her, "I'm going to see what is going on."

"I have nowhere else to go," Luna joked.

He rolled his eyes but tried to hide a quick smile as he dashed up the stairs and locked the dungeon door behind him. 

It was then he was face with Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, and a disguised Harry Potter in his fellow Death Eaters arms. It all happened so quickly, he hardly heard his father asking him if that was in fact Harry Potter kneeling on the floor.

Draco looked into his eyes, and Harry stared back at him in confusion. If Draco were Harry, he would have wondered why he didn't just turn him over immediately, too. Of course he recognized him, but something stopped him. It was then that Luna flashed through his mind. 

His mother tapped him on the shoulder and he got up and followed her.

It was then Hermione Granger was tortured by his Aunt, and he wondered how Luna was coping with her screams. It was then that he had truly picked his side. 

He wanted Luna's side to win, if that meant she was alright.

He dueled, but he purposely lost. He watched Harry Potter's perplexed face as he took his wand and stood by Luna. Luna looked at Draco with calm eyes. It slowed down his breathing, until his Aunt threw her knife into their apparition. 

Draco thought he heard himself scream, but apparently nothing audible came out of his mouth. He wondered if she had survived, or if his Aunt had killed her. In that moment, he felt pure hatred. If anything happened to her, he wouldn't know what to do. 

It was as though his mother knew, because she locked her fingers through his to tell him she was there and it would all be okay.

* * *

He didn't see her again until the Battle of Hogwarts. He dreamed about her every day and prayed she was still alive, and when he saw her blonde hair trailing behind her as she ran down the staircase, he finally was able to breathe.

"Luna!?" He called after her, but she didn't hear him. She just kept running away from curses being flown in her direction. It was then she grabbed Neville's hand as they dodged a curse and went around the corner. Draco felt a burning pit of jealousy in his gut. But this wasn't the time; he knew that. He had to go after Harry, or he would die. Or worse, his mum would die. He couldn't let that happen. 

As he entered the Room of Requirement with Crabbe and Goyle, he was hoping he wouldn't succeed. He was hoping there would be another turn of events where they could all survive, and he got his wish. Or so he hoped.

After Harry saved him, he ran in the opposite direction and almost immediately into a dueling Luna. One of his fellow Death Eaters was trying to bring her down, without evening questioning it, he blasted a curse in their direction and they were shot backward. She turned around and saw that it was Draco who saved her. She didn't seem surprised at all. 

"Draco?" She yelled over the commotion, "What are you doing?"

He didn't say anything as he grabbed her hand and ran off with her in the opposite direction. They turned a corner and huddled down behind a pillar and away from the battle.

"I'm happy to see you," Luna commented, "But I can't stay here and hide. I need to fight-"

"I know," Draco interrupted her, "I'm just glad you're okay. I-I just wanted to ask."

She smiled, "You already know the answer."

"You don't know what I was about to ask you."

"You don't need to ask, you already know. Yes, it was all real, Draco. It still can be, after this is all over."

Relief rushed through him, and he looked down to see that their hands were still intertwined.

"You were going to ask me who my grounding force was that day," Luna told him, "I was going to say it changes throughout my life. Sometimes it is just me, sometimes it is a concept, but that whole time I was down in your dungeons, it was you."

It was then Draco had the urge to kiss her, but he knew he had to let her go. He wasn't even sure if Luna was into that kind of thing. She had a different way of approaching the world, and he didn't want to intrude on her boundaries. 

She lightly brushed his cheek with her hand before she went back out running into the crowd dueling those he was supposed to be supporting, but he knew he no longer was on their side, even if he acted like it. He had one goal now other than to save his mum, and that was to live until the next day to see Luna Lovegood. 

He smiled as the world was crumbling around them, and it was the first time he saw the truth. It was the truth that Luna was trying to tell him all along.

**He was still lovable.**


End file.
